If the claimant(s) informs you that s/he cannot obtain the
information, or says that the evidence you have specified does not
exist, and you are satisfied that the explanation is genuine, you
should disregard the relevant items for the purposes of taking
penalty action.
If you are not satisfied with the explanations you should
write to the claimant(s) telling them so and explaining that you
will now be taking further action.
Claimants might encounter problems producing statements for
internet bank accounts. These statements are often only available
on-line and some internet banks only make them available for 3
months. Where you asked for the statements to help you consider the
household’s income and expenditure you might still be able to
piece together some of the outgoings from household bills. You
could suggest that the claimant lets you see their three most
recent statements and then you will need to discuss these at any
meeting which you hold so that you establish whether there have
been any significant changes to their income or expenditure.
